I need to check the actual script and response instructions

Before you write a word of Chinese, read the instruction line for five things: the language, the script, the form, the size and the content. This page shows how to do it and where the official answers sit.

It does not state your paper’s rules, because they depend on your code and exam year. It shows the habit that stops good Chinese from going to the wrong question.

What are we checking?

The instruction lines are part of the task. A well-written answer that ignores them answers a different question.

1. Language. Assessed Chinese-language work stays in Chinese. Check the instructions for your route.
2. Script. The writing system your answer uses, such as simplified or traditional characters. Check what the Cambridge documents and your paper say, and keep one choice consistent inside an answer.
3. Form. A letter, a report, a paragraph, a short answer. The form decides the opening, the closing and the tone.
4. Size. The length the task shows. Note the unit it uses.
5. Content. The points the task asks you to cover, and who the answer is for.

What does a missed instruction look like?

The instruction below is an invented practice line, written for this page. It is not Cambridge wording.

用中文给朋友写一封信，约一百五十字，介绍你上个周末做了什么。

A student reads it quickly and writes this.

上个周末我去了吉隆坡的双子塔。那里的人很多，风景也很漂亮。我们先去购物中心，然后去公园散步。下午我们还看了电影。我觉得周末过得很开心，因为可以和家人在一起。吉隆坡是一个很大的城市，有很多好玩的地方。……

The student goes on for about three hundred characters. The Chinese reads well. But the answer has no opening to a friend, no closing, and runs to about twice the size shown.

Why does this happen?

1. Reading for the topic only. The eye catches “周末” and starts writing, and the form and size words are skipped.
2. Trusting memory. The student remembers “we usually write about 300 characters” from another task.
3. Writing first, checking never. The answer is finished before anyone compares it with the line.

Cause 2 is the one to test first. Ask: where on my own paper does it say that?

A routine that catches it

1. Underline the language, form, size and content words in the instruction.
2. Write a five-point note in the margin or your plan: language, script, form, size, content.
3. Plan the size. For a short letter, decide how many sentences each point gets.
4. Reread the line after the first paragraph, and again at the end.

The repaired version

Note: 中文; script kept consistent; 信; about 150 characters; last weekend’s activities, to a friend.

小文：

你好！上个周末我和家人去了双子塔。我们先在购物中心吃午饭，然后去公园散步，风景很漂亮。公园里有一个大喷泉，晚上还有灯光表演，很多人都在拍照。下午我们看了一部电影，我最喜欢最后的一幕。回来的路上，我们买了一些小吃带给奶奶。这个周末我过得很开心，因为可以和家人在一起。你有空的话，下次和我们一起去吧！

小明

It opens to a friend, closes with a name, keeps to the size and stays on last weekend. (The letter form is what the invented line asked for. Your paper’s form will be whatever your instruction says.)

Self-check

Here is a second invented practice line.

请用中文写一段话，约八十字，向同学介绍你最喜欢的一本书，并说明原因。

1. List the five points the line sets.
2. A draft reads: 《西游记》很好看。What two things are missing?
3. Where do you confirm the real instructions for your own exam?

Where should I go next?

If you are not sure which code you are entered for, start with the resource fit guide. For how your route’s papers are laid out, use the assessment guide. The lesson on checking a response against confirmed 0547 task guidance shows the same habit for one route, and writing accuracy and feedback builds the habit of reviewing your own drafts.

The revision compare view shows two drafts side by side, and the summary studio helps with selecting relevant points. For reading when the main idea slips, see I understand characters but miss the main idea.

If you want a teacher to read the instruction lines with you, online one-to-one Chinese tuition starts from the route your exam centre has confirmed. See the whole subject in the Chinese learning guide.